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Saturday, 29 December 2012

Last colour! It seems fitting that I've ended this challenge as I began, with a faun, so bringing it full circle. I don't know why I like fauns so much; usually I'm much more a fan of the predatory species; but green makes me think of woodland, and this is a particularly coniferous shade. It matches the detail on my shirt which is part of the outfit for a wood elf, in everybody's library, and something I'd already played around with. Looking for antlers, I decided to go with the new ones I won on the Enchanted Frost hunt and make it a white faun for winter. It also has echoes of Cernunnos or Pan, the ancient forest god. I think I will name her Ceinwen, which is Welsh, meaning 'beautiful' and 'white, blessed'.The wood elf outfit was fortuitous as I didn't have a lot of time to find a match, what with the colour swatch being announced late (over the Christmas holiday, indeed..!) and me falling ill AGAIN - just as I was recovering from the bronchitis and chest infection, Jamie's school sent him home with a really nasty cold for the holidays. I've been sick for nearly a week and we missed Christmas dinner, which I'm hoping to make up for as soon as I get my sense of taste back. I've now been ill for two solid months >.< Anyway that's why I'm only just posting this up with 2 days of the year left to go.

This is the end of the Colour Challenge, as Luna won't be running it for a third year - I think the colours are getting too similar, now that all the clear contrasts have been used. I'm sorry for everyone who was hoping for another go, but I would have ducked out of the next round anyway. I had a fantastic time and am so glad I did this (and managed all 52 colours! W00t!) but it was a struggle, and I think I've achieved everything I set out to, and more than I anticipated. I knew going in that the challenge would stimulate my creativity, but I never quite realised how it would stretch my ingenuity and even change my attitudes to certain colours. I haven't changed the primary colours in my wardrobe, but I view other colours in a much kindlier light, even the dreaded pinks! I've amazed myself with the lovely (or at least interesting) avatars I've been able to put together for the most difficult hues, and will doubtless wear them all again. I am so grateful to Luna for thinking up and running this challenge, but also to my sister Rudh. Without her I never would have heard of the phenomenon of blogging challenges, and her crazy, creative posts during the first year (2011) were a huge inspiration. I probably wouldn't have kept going this year, when the colours were tough and real life conspired against me, but I always knew she would post something I'd have to live up to each week, in a spirit of friendly competition, and that motivated me in the same way it helps to visit the gym with a friend. Rudh isn't the only person I have to thank, as over the course of this challenge I've come to know other bloggers and admire their style and talent. Everyone is a winner in this challenge, I don't think there are any 'firsts'; we've all shown a unique perspective in the ways in which we interpret and showcase the colours, and I have learned a lot from you all in styling, photography, framing and the discovery of delightful new stores to raid for my hoard! I'm sorry that I haven't been able to comment as much as you all deserve (or that sometimes I commented so late, you probably didn't realise!) but I have really enjoyed looking through the posts for each week and have seen many pictures so lovely I would gladly hang them on my castle walls as artwork (I haven't, because that would be theft). I hope everyone has enjoyed this challenge as much as me, and gained as much from it, and I hope we all continue to work on our blogs the way Luna intended us to. Here's wishing you all a healthy, happy new year and continued inspiration. As Ceinwen would say, Blessed Be!

I mentioned I'd be looking for a chance to showcase my Dryad in her winter form - and here she is! I was lucky to pick up the dress from the first round of the Womenstuff Hunt, and it's actually a perfect colour match; the lighting in these shots makes it appear darker. The detail on the dress is a tracery of twigs, which might be what inspired me. This avatar was a work in progress until now, so the challenge finally pushed me to work on the branches, which I have modified substantially from the original version. The skin is perfect for the occasion. It is called 'Winter Stole the Dryad's Heart' and was made (as part of a set) for a special event some years back, so I'm afraid it's probably no longer available. For people in modern times, winter often seems magical, with the wonderland of snow and the allure of Christmas or other midwinter holidays. But it is also a very cruel season, particularly to nature. It is beautiful, but deadly. I've been suffering with bronchitis since the beginning of November, now on my second course of antibiotics, and am in constant pain from having strained my chest muscles through coughing. I haven't been able to tidy or decorate my house and the floors haven't been cleaned in over a month. Christmas cards are not yet sent, there is no tree, and I am feeling very sorry for myself - so I can really identify with this poor frozen Dryad!

*** Winter Stole the Dryad's Heart ***

Snowflakes skate along glittering moonbeamsA girl in red stands on a frozen lakeHer frozen heart is pinned upon a branch.

House of Ruin 'Change of Seasons' Dryad skin (ghost) & eyes (carmine) ~ store now {Rue}Magika 'Tomorrow' hair (mesh)Wild Serenity 'Amore' coral dress (from Womenstuff hunt)Ruby circlet by Elros TuominenHouse of Rain 'Laughing Bloody Murder' necklace (ltd. ed. from Unhinged event)Livid Tears of Blood and Nosferatu claws (free gifts!)Yellow Jester impaled heart from A Tainted Love huntLassitude & Ennui solar & lunar braceletsI apologise that so often, as here, I use items which can no longer be obtained. The simple fact is, I am doing this challenge for myself, using what I have. If you like my avatars, if they inspire you, if an item catches your eye and switches you on to a previously unknown store, that's great! But I'm not and never will be a fashion blogger. I credit for two reasons: to acknowledge the designers who make the lovely things without which I couldn't play dress-up; and to give you an idea where to go to find, at the very least, more of the same style, if not the exact same items.

Monday, 10 December 2012

From least to most fitting, this week is gold, gold, GOLD - *my* colour! At last a chance to truly be myself and shine in a way my friends would recognise. The avatar, therefore, was not too difficult to assemble but I had a bit of trouble finding a good photo-location. I wanted somewhere palatial, Byzantine rather than Gothic, but the places I tried had too much gold in the background and it would have been another 'Where's Fledge?' post with you squinting to find the outlines! Finally it occurred to me to try Svarga, because that has long been one of my favourite places in SL, and as well as being beautiful it seemed fitting to showcase myself there - the true Fledge, in one of my dearest haunts. Because the colour is gold, there was also no way I could pass up the opportunity to reveal my draconic Trueform for this post, an avatar I modified to be unique and to suit the way I see my draconic form. I would like to note that if you make the week's colour shiny (on a coloured prim), because gold is of course metallic, it also matches my humanoid outfit perfectly; without shiny, it is a little mustardy. Gold is a very tricky colour to pin down in textures and I have been chasing it throughout my 6+ years of SL.You may be wondering why, if the avatar is totally 'me', it's brand new for this post; the answer being that it's a new skin, a very generous gift from a friend. Previously I have tended to wear my adapted dragon horns as seen in Lemon Chiffon, with other skins of varying yellow to golden shades. These horns were a better colour match, and now I've made this, it's my new favourite.

~O~ Gold Dragon Queen ~O~

Dancing in the Palace Courtyard

Seeding Flower

Waterside #1 - Trumpet Flowers

Waterside #2 - Waterfall

Waterside #3 - Pool

Dragon, aloft!

Dragon, at rest.

~O~ Credits ~O~

This fantastic sim no longer has a working ecosystem (I believe it requires rather extensive maintenance) but still features all the functioning elements except plant growth - rainfall from clouds (you can see one overhead in the first image), seeding plants and pollinating insects (day and night species). Birds and bats flit about, which used to control the insect population. Originally, plants would seed after pollination, and seeds required rain to grow. You could watch in real time as flowers bloomed and grew larger on empty patches of earth. It was a fantastic system but although the AI part is no longer active, the sim is essentially unchanged and there is plenty to see. You may still be able to buy a functioning eco-pack for your own sim if so inclined.

Monday, 3 December 2012

I have been saying (threatening?) for a while now that if another pink came up, I would put on my Barbie doll. (The pudding for week 45 was too good to miss though.) I have PurpleMoon to thank for the dress - heaven knows when I picked it up, I imagine it was a group gift from the subscriber because I don't think I would have deliberately taken it from the main group board in-store - it's pretty but it's about as far from my usual fashion choices as you can get! However, it is perfect for this challenge, and for Barbie. I knew Rudh had a pink posing box like the packaging you get Barbies in, so I asked to borrow that, and then she had the inspired idea of me being a Christmas present under the tree. This led to me setting up an impromptu Christmas scene on Hell's workshop platform, after I promised to clean up after myself. The results are really quite startlingly cute and sugary and it's good that I've got this out of the way early in the season because I have plans for the Christmas week and... well it depends what colour crops up but let's just say I'm going to try to be as anti-glitz as possible. I do love Christmas but the kitsch gets to me before it even properly begins, IRL as well as SL.Now with that in mind, it has to be said, though I love what I've done with the theme this week, this is the least 'Fledgey' of my Challenge outfits to date and I don't quite feel comfortable wandering around in public in it - I know, I've tried. In another sense though, because I'm playing at being an animated doll, it IS very 'me'. Everyone who knows me finds the look slightly scary - and my husband looked over at my screen, threw me a look as though I'd sprouted another head, and said in ominous tones "You've CHANGED..." - meaning that the colour challenge has gone to my head and affected the way that I dress. He could be right! But there was one person who loved the look, and that was Violin Cupcake, my adorable little (SLadopted) daughter. She came over at the perfect time to join in the photoshoot and complete the theme; so without more ado, I present:-

~*.*.*~ A Little Girl's Christmas ~*.*.*~

~*.*.*~ Wish Come True ~*.*.*~

Twas the night before Christmas and under the tree,Was a box with a dolly, as pink as could be!

In a gown of spun sugar she was seemingly dressed,As against her boxed confines she eagerly pressed.

Then who should sneak out, at her presents to peep,But young Violin, who should be fast asleep!

Christmas morning at last, and the doll was unwrapped; "Pull my cord!" she said with a giggle, and clapped.

Then under the tree, with her nightgown and lolly, The little girl danced with her new living dolly. Violin never wanted this Christmas to end; For Santa had brought her a magical friend!

Really, what little girl wouldn't want a life sized, magical, talking and walking dolly -in a pink ballerina outfit- for Christmas? (Well, as a child I could have done without the tutu but I'm sure I would have loved the doll.)

Close-up for detail against my dressing mirror. The skin even has seams at the correct places for joint attachment.

~*.*.*~ Credits ~*.*.*~

Outfit:Barbie Doll avatar by Mason Wylie ~ free *full perms* shape, skin, eyes and four different hair colours, with a pull-cord that plays random recorded doll phrases; you can even hear the rattle of the cord winding up as she talks! Ask me if you'd like a copy. Outfit not included.

Props & Scenery:Grim Bros. Wonky Houses ~ Candy Cabin (with some extra Christmas decor by me)Botanical Snowy Holiday FirGolden Delish Poses Dollbox (store closed).I don't know where Violin bought her outfits but I love how her favourite jammies match the post colour! She was delighted to show off her own wardrobe and I was lucky to get these shots in between all the changes.

Monday, 26 November 2012

A tangelo is a fruit, a hybrid of a mandarine orange and a grapefruit. It is also an incredibly vivid orange and sounds enough like 'tango' to conjure images of dancing. I have been wanting to post pictures of my phoenix avatar ever since I got these ultra awesome mesh wings after the Fantasy Faire, and this post actually gave me the opportunity of spicing her up a bit so that I am rather wowed by the effect, if I do say so myself! Did I mention that orange, in particular the fiery oranges, is my favourite colour? Well I think this post shows it. I also found a fantastic photo and rp setting, and while I was taking my pictures a group of warriors were holding a mass battle in the amphitheatre behind me - I wonder if they guessed their tournament was blessed by the presence of a Phoenix? ;) - I would have taken all the pictures against the beautiful palace, but the sunlight fell the other way and the details came out much better turned around. Still, I have included one so you can see the palace, and all the camels lined up outside. I love the effect of my new AO with the wings and the silks, and I took a lot of pictures and decided to combine some of them in panels to show a sense of movement. These are really rather awesome silks because they have dense multiple flexi layers and move very sensually. I love the way good silks are exotic and alluring, but I also like being able to wear them on avatars which don't scream 'Gorean submissive', since I am something of a polar opposite! If anybody tried to capture my phoenix... well, they'd better be wearing asbestos body armour.Oh, and... Katlien said I should put a warning on this post, in case I give anyone a heart attack ;) Which is a good time to point out you can't see my nipples. Honestly! They are covered with pasties as well as the jewel dangles. The texture just blends rather well... and appears to have an extremely good 3D effect. Seriously, the skin itself is incredibly detailed and I -had- to cover up the nipples, they were rather striking. In at least one picture I suppose they still are... oh well!

The hair was my first purchased flexi hairstyle and I still love it, for the texture and colours.*Please note: the jewellery set includes headpiece, necklace, bracelets and earrings. I copied and rearranged some of these to other parts of the body since I wasn't wearing much else!

Saturday, 24 November 2012

Breaking the recent mould this week, I'm going back to a more conventionally pretty avatar with a colour which is basically in the gold range - my standard! I don't know why but I fancied wearing my fox for this one, which made me think of kitsune - the Japanese for 'fox'. I knew that the Japanese consider foxes to be very magical, spiritual animals but I did a bit of research and discovered that they are sacred to Inari, the kami of fertility, rice, agriculture, industry and worldly success. Foxes, agriculture, barley corn?! Fantastic coincidence! Not to mention that for some reason, kitsune are meant to be very fond of tofu. As a vegetarian I can relate to that, although we generally eat Quorn which is an indigenous English mushroom substitute for meat. Now Inari's messengers are pure white, which my fox isn't, but I decided I could go on a family visit to meet my sacred cousins - and I recalled a beautiful Japanese sim where I once bought a kimono and drank tea with friends. When I went back, the colours as well as the architecture were perfectly suited to my avatar, yet another happy coincidence, though by this time I have to say that so many coincidences were starting to seem, well - too coincidental to be a mere coincidence! I would add here that I got my fox in memory of my previous pet, Infalle, who left SL some time ago but has always remained a friend. So this post is in honour of her, and happy times! May Inari bring her success with her many creative talents.

{|} {|} {|} Barley Corn {|} {|} {|}

(I do apologise for the number of pictures in this post. I wanted to showcase as much of this beautiful location as possible, and I was really enjoying the way the avatar posed with her fan and long skirts - it was too hard to whittle down any further, though I'll have to make that decision for the Flickr group -- they only accept three!)

On pilgrimage to the shrine of Inari at "GiornoBrando"

Crossing the canal bridge

Feeding the pigeons by the statue of Jizo

(As a mother, I feel very warmly towards Jizo, who is the protector of young children.)

Passing under the Myoujin Torii (sacred gate)

Cleansing myself at the Chouzuya

Paying my respects (omairi) at the shrine

(The owner of this shrine has a roguish sense of humour. When I pulled the rope, a big ball fell on my head! I made a donation and another one fell on me! It had a present in it.)

Definitely a rogue. The kami of this shrine is not Inari - it is a PENGUIN! I am tittering behind my fan.

Communing with my cousins on the root of the Shinboku, the sacred tree.

(Kitsune are profound tricksters and I feel sure they have something to do with that penguin...)

Sunday, 18 November 2012

I told you last week about the Sn@tch-Pulse-Nomine etc. horror game, the 'Resting Place', which incidentally is still going until the end of today so if you haven't yet been, NOW IS YOUR LAST CHANCE! Rudh and I made out with over 50 prizes (and we didn't find all of them!) but although I was assiduous in my hunt for swag, I have to say I was really there to soak up the atmosphere of the game itself. I wasn't expecting too much from the prizes so I was delighted to find some treasures among this hoard - and with only a couple of exceptions, all the prizes were quality items, if not necessarily my style. This post is by way of a 'thank you!' to all the people who made the game and contributed goodies ~ but even with no prizes, I would PAY to play this game again, it was so awesome. This event is one I will definitely never miss again.

Halloween Avatars, thanks to Sn@tch et al.

There was a lot to choose from and you know my penchant for creating avatars rather than outfits, so I put together my favourites from my Monty haul and managed to create THREE completely different looks! Please bear with me as there are a few photos in this post, to show things off - remember you can click on an image to see the photos alone in a slideshow, and I will break things up with item credits between the avatars.

~ The Witchling ~

I really love this outfit; I've never felt particularly inspired to dress up as a witch, I tend to favour the monsters on Halloween, but by the time I was done I really wished I'd had this creepy-cute avatar on October 31st. I combined several makeup layers and I love how the full-face tattoo from PMD softens the rather gory deathmask on the skin beneath, making it look much more like a Halloween face paint design. I just had to add the Halloween special jewellery from Stars!, which the designer very kindly let me purchase after the event, because all the seasonal sickness kept me from her store. And this Mad Hattery creation was perfect for the occasion, with a circling witch (she actually rotates around the hat) and incredibly creepy soundfile - the hat plays the refrain 'Come Little Children' from Hocus Pocus.

Obviously with an outfit like this I had to go trick-or-treating. So I added a scripted candy bucket from Schadenfreude (she does a new one each year, the pumpkin was last year's) which lifts up with the cute kiddy voiceover 'trick or treat!' What a cute little witch, most people would think on opening their door to this sight. Except...

Or maybe your guts. Eyes could be too high to reach, as I am not the tallest avatar in SL but the size of this door makes me look like a child! Honestly what is it with house builders and proportion...

The design on the dress, because the treat bucket hides the head on the main picture. I wore the pants and sweater with the dress because on its own it looked a bit chilly for late October!

The full Sn@tch sweater outfit, without the mummy dress, so you can see what it looks like.

~ The Demoness ~

By the pricking of my thumbs...

Something wicked this way comes!

Good job I laid down a pentagram in holy fire.

The bulk of this outfit is one prize, parts for a demon avatar in pulsing fiery orange, and though I have built up my own demons (they are a favoured avatar class of mine) I was really tickled with this one. For a start it has clutching skeletal hands for 'armour' which are something I've wanted as long as I've known my good friend Kage, the most stunning demoness in SL. Hers are white, mine are black, so now we contrast! I managed to capture a quick shot of us standing together. And then there's the fact that orange is my favourite colour. And the parts are just really great builds. The skin, eyes and tattoo just completed the look. -- I have just discovered that this demon would probably fit next week's colour (Tangelo) really well, but one thing I am not short of is oranges so I'll keep her here and make a new outfit.

~ The Demon Hunter ~

If there are demons around, clearly we have to bring in a demon hunter! Of course I have one ready made on my alt account, none other than Dean Winchester (and he's the best of the best!) but the Winchesters can't be everywhere at once and they generally have enough on their plate. Besides, Resting Place needed its own hunter, rather than the poor medical assistant who got sent in to die (that's your role in the game, except you don't know about that last bit until it happens).

Is it me or is there too much blood here for a couple of cadavers..? The place stinks of sweet metal. It's fresh.

Hard to hear if something's coming the way these lights keep stuttering and buzzing...

And the machine going Bloop! I feel like something's watching though... I'm keeping my eye on those chiller drawers.(Shot taken artistically through the formaldehyde tank.)

This bloody morgue skybox complete with furniture was the awesome double prize from Dragon Magick Wares, and an exact replica of one of the scenes in Resting Place - but without the medlab skeleton we joked about at the time. (He seems pleased to see you Fledge! - Don't tell me he has a boner :P ) I think I've made a fairly credible outfit - ok so in real life NOBODY would wear heels for a job like this, but in SL gravity is your friend and a nice sharp stiletto is a handy (or footsy?) tool. Jewellery is also frowned on in the military but hey, I'm freelance, and honestly? If a zombie is coming after me to rip out my brains, snagging my piercings on something is pretty low down on my list of priorities. It's a shame the earrings don't show so well, the collar hides them a bit, they have cute little drops of blood at the points. I figure they are actually real syringes containing dead man's blood, a good defence against vampires, or so Dean tells me. The scissors are for using against mummies, of course! (Think about it ;) This outfit is pretty much a Sn@tch ensemble, and as fits the main designer of the game, there were a lot of prizes from this store (we got 12).Resting Place Prize Credits:

Dragon Magick Wares Morgue with furnishingsSakide Bloody zipped latex skirtSn@tch SkeletankSn@tch 'SciFi Halloween' Heavy Metal Jeans (came with a top)Sn@tch After Hours makeup (smokey eyes-T)Sn@tch Medusa posture collar (came with a skirt)Sn@tch Nurse Ratchet earringsSn@tch Eternal Life & Full on face piercingsOther Credits:H.I.M. Fashions Demon Hunter helmet, pack & posing gun (from Demonology Hunt '09)W&Y Hair 30 (modded to fit helmet)Damned skin ~ SCN07 WhiteAmacci eyes ~ 'Infinity' Brown ~ Image (recent group gift)::69:: MilitaryBoots Forest (from before they became an exclusive hair store)And to finish off the post: Rudh and I had a very weird conversation after I commented on her colour challenge this week and said maybe we got our macabre sides from our virtual (SL) mother. Thinking about all the things we attribute to Mommy Dearest, she sounds a lot like Alice from Resting Place! It could explain a few things -- why Rudh really liked Ellie's bedroom, covered in blood as it was, for one. Then it occurred to me that our mom was, if not actually a prostitute, certainly someone who liked the lads (she was a pooka; they are known for it) and that she and Rudh would fit the Ellie scenario eerily well. That made us wonder who I would match in the game - I have to say I did like the burning city, take out the charred corpses and the screaming and sirens and it would be very cosy and homelike! Maybe I was adopted and, due to my significant differences, never quite fit in, hence my running wild with gangs. Probably the rival gang didn't set the fire that killed my adopted parents - that was me, breathing flames to defend myself when they beat me, and the guilt is what gave me the nightmares. I survived because of my draconic immunity to flames. So how about that, Rudh and I have officially adopted two of the Resting Place inmates as our personae! I think that's got to be a flattering endorsement, don't you?